A Matter Of Respect Ch. 10

Finch walked through my office door exactly twenty three minutes after I left him and his friends at the firing range. His hair was tousled and his tie was all out of kilter. I greeted him with a smile. He met me with an 'oh fuck' expression then sat down 

"Was that fast enough for you?" He asked indignantly.

"So long as you're on time, kiddo. That's all that counts." I responded.

Finch looked really worked up. I knew I had pissed him off, and good. Still something else was bothering him. His motions were jerky. He kept fiddling with his hands. This was alien to the cool arrogant young man I was used to seeing. To me he looked like a man close to panic.Then again, he's a sneaky little fucker. This could be a ploy to make me go easy on him. 

"Something bothering you man? You look like you just seen a haint." I questioned Finch.

"A haint?" He asked. "Whatever that is, the answer is no. I'm a very busy person and I can't have my schedule interrupted."

Well now, he pissed me off right from the get go. 

"Your schedule? Finch you are an employee of this company, which is privately owned, funded, and internally ran. You don't have a schedule. You have A Job. That job requires a responsibility. That responsibility is an ongoing obligation if you're going to be paid to work for this company. And that responsibility does not operate on a fucking schedule unless I give one to you. This isn't a fashion statement you're making, it's your career. I don't know who or what gave you the impression that you can be strutting your banty little ass up and down these hallways playing cock of the walk." 

He was staring through me like he could kill. That was exactly what I wanted. One wrong move in the next few days and I was going to recommend him to termination. He just had to take that step, make that false move. He didn't say a word so I continued.

"I'm not too well spoken Finch, so let me lay this out real simple like. I think you dislike me because I hold the job you wanted. I can understand that, but I can plainly see that you don't have this job because you aren't ready for it. Your ideas of what this job means aren't firmly based in reality my man. You can't go around playing Secret Squirrel and recording what people say when they don't know it. It creates dissent and people dislike you whether they know you or not.  The employees here watch you over their shoulders everywhere you go, and I know damned well you like it. That's not what The Job is about Finch. And it's not what I'm about."

Finch sat there for a moment then spoke. He looked as if he was studying his words carefully before speaking.

"I don't make it a habit of recording people when they don't know about it. I have alot to do and using my cassette recorder allows me to efficiently budget my time. I have to make notes on different issues on all three floors every day." He responded. His voice was a little smug. 

"That sounds like a practical thing to do Buster, but I don't believe you for a split second. Your recorder is now being replaced with a pen and a note pad. I catch you with that thing in your pocket again and I'm giving you reprimand Number One. And don't think I can't make it stick." I replied. 

"You're trying hard to bust my balls Nails. But that isn't going to happen." He snapped at me.

"Brother if I wanted to bust your balls, they would be sitting at home in a mason jar." I told him.

He had a lost expression for a moment. I agree, that's a hard thing to respond to. I decided it was time to give Mr. hot shot's temper a little push.

"Finch what are your qualifications for this job?" I asked.

He looked at me as if he had been slapped.

"What?" 

"You heard me. What are your qualifications? If you can't remember the important details I'll call Vetka and she can bring me your resume. I'm certain you have it stashed in your office somewhere. I think a young and rising little star like you wouldn't think twice about latching on to something better if it came along. Maybe something cushy will fall into your lap. Just in case it hasn't registered with you yet Mista Finch, I'm the man with the fuzzy nuts around here. So when I say jump you say 'how high?' Now give me the nines on your job qualifications."

Finch looked as if he was struggling with himself. He wanted to leap from his chair and throttle me. He finally spoke, his words a touch shaky. He wasn't just mad, the boy was boiling over.

"I'm a Yale graduate, with honors. I have three certificates in first aid and lifesaving. I completed the lifeguard course in Key West, that certificate is still valid. I am a double black belt with seven years of formal training. I have a private tutor I spar with every month. I qualified on the shooting range here in town, and I have passed a very thorough background check prior to applying for this job."

He paused for a second then looked at me. 

"And if you don't mind me asking Nails, what are your qualifications?" He asked. 

"My qualifications are obvious. If they're not, then you're in the wrong business kid." I replied.

When I said that he just about came out of his seat. He lifted his hand and pointed at me, opening his mouth to say something. I stared at him intently, waiting for him to speak. He dropped his hand.

"You point that finger at me again kiddo and I'll be wearing it around my neck for a good luck charm. Now, I have your attention so I think we should capitalize on this quality time we are spending together. You see Finch, there are rules I operate by. This Job is defined by rules. One rule is that I never disrespect a co-worker who had paid his dues. Now I don't think you've paid your dues in the same way I have, but I can see you have been very ambitious and I hate to see hard work gone to waste. I respect what you have accomplished Finch, even thought I don't like the way you work. If you disrespect what a man has done with his life, it's like disrespecting every thing he stands for."

Finch seemed to deflate a bit. 

"I want you to be an active part of the solution, not a part of the problem. I want the people here to know your name and your face, and not just because they think they have to watch every move you make. I want these employees to see you coming and smile for a change Finch. I have seen you walk around this place like it's your own personal little prison camp, and I don't like it. If you ever want to hold down my job, you have to learn to be a personality within the company."

"The people here know me." Finch replied.

"Yes they do. And for all practical means, they don't fucking like you. The younger workers think you are a hot head, and the older ones think you're a spoiled brat." I said in response.

"So what do you think?" He asked suddenly.

"I think you're both." I said flatly. "And furthermore, you have a little explaining to do."

I picked up the remote on my desk and turned the bank of monitors on. I scrolled through the different screens until I found the camera view of the women's bathroom. I paused the image and set the remote down.

"Now before you say a word, let me make a few points of interest. I did a head count while I was waiting for you. The women working here outnumber the men almost three to one on a floor to floor basis. There is only one camera in this one bathroom on this one floor. I checked with maintenance. It was installed at your request, so it wasn't a mistake. I checked back four years and not a single incident was recorded concerning this bathroom, this floor even. No woman working on this floor has been terminated in nineteen months, and this camera has been here for six months. My point is, no matter what reason you have for putting this camera in the woman's bathroom, it can't be a good one. And if you do have a valid reason for watching the girls squat and piddle, you left the incident off the books, which implies negligence. Either way what this means is that your ass is grass and I am the lawn mower."

The kid looked ads if he was slowly melting into his seat. I remember being caught doing something I wasn't supposed to as a kid. I bet my face looked alot like his.

"I'm going to chalk this up as a big mistake." I told Finch. " The thought of it just about make me sick, but I'm not willing to waste your talents if I can avoid it. I will tell you this much, though. If I find any more of these cameras or any other kind of monitoring device that isn't strictly within the parameters of a company function, well let's just say I'm bringing an empty mason jar to work. You got it?"

He didn't asnwer at first. His killer stare had deteriorated into that shit eating frown I have grown to love so much. He finally gave me a resigned little 'yes.'

"If I see the maintenance guy moving things around here and there over the next few days, I'm going to be a nice guy and assume he's making necessary changes. I won't jump to the conclusion that he's doing something to cover your ass. But if by chance he is, that's good for you. That gives you a fair chance you keep your job Finch. I know you don't like me and I don't care. I'm fair no matter what."

"Are we done here?" Finch asked.

"Almost. From this day forth you are operating on the honor system. I am going to trust you not to record your coworkers. And I'll grant you some flexibility there as well. If it's something particularly technical or drawn out, then by all means whip out your little toy. Otherwise no more spy games within the ranks. And one more thing, you are now on parking deck detail."

I handed him a sheet of legal ruled paper with some handwritten instructions on it. His face went slack. As he read a look of dread crossed his face. His brow furrowed and he sighed. He looked up at me then started to say something, then hesitated.

"I'll have Ms. Peregot type it up all nice and pretty, but the information will all be the same. I'd appreciate it if you would be a good boy scout and start this afternoon when shift change rolls around." I gave him my best politician smile. "Any questions?"

"Yeah. Just one. You're going to give me a hard time every chance you get, aren't you?"

"Finch my man you haven't seen hard yet. That's one more reason why you're not ready for this job. If you do good by me I'll make this the easiest job in the world for you.  If you don't cooperate then you'll find you're butting your head against a brick wall."

Finch stood and left my office without another word. The moment my office door closed Julia came bolting out of her office. She ran behind my desk and plastered me with a kiss. She rose up and smothered my face in her cleavage.

"You earned that." She said with a brilliant smile. "I've never seen Finch put in his place like that. That was simply fucking fantastic Nails." 

I reached around behind her and pulled her down in front of me. I looked at the door, listened for a second then looked back at her. She was looking up at me with those bright cat's eyes of hers. I opened my fly and her hand slid inside. She pulled my cock out. It was immediately hard. 

"You realize this is strictly in a professional capacity, correct?" I asked her. 

"Yes sir I do." She responded, then wrapped her mouth around my throbbing cock and began devouring me.

"It's good to be the man in charge." I told myself. 

Fade To Black